Legal Business Development Archives - Page 6 of 35

Legal Research News; Law Firm Updates and Awards and Law School Admission Changes: September 9, 2019

Labor Day is in the rearview, and the legal world churns on, with new developments, innovations and changes coming in on an almost a daily basis. This week’s update on the trending news in the legal industry features Clark Hill merging with Las Vegas litigation boutique firm Gentile Cristalli Miller Armeni Savarese, former FedEx Senior Vice President responsible for US Litigation joins Bradley, and six attorneys from Le Clair Ryan move to Fox Rothschild.

Read on to learn more about what’s happening.

Law Firm Hires, Moves and Mergers

Michael Best recently announced the addition of Mark Yacura to the firm’s Washington DC office. A seasoned attorney with more than 30 years of experience, he will join Michael Best as a partner and focus on FDA Regulatory issues. In his career, he has advised his clients on FDA approval and clearance processes, and worked on matters regarding synthetic pharmaceuticals, biotechnology diagnostics, medical devices and conventional foods, along with regulatory matters involving other agencies, such as the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), among others.

Eric Callisto, Group Chair of Michael Best’s Regulatory Practice, sees Yacura’s experience as crucial in advising the firm’s international and domestic clients on the shifting political landscape. Callisto calls Yacura “highly respected” and says, “it’s an honor to welcome him to our team in the Beltway.”

Conne Lensing Fed Ex Bradley — Connie Lewis Lensing

Bradley announced that Connie Lewis Lensing, formerly in house at Fed Ex, has joined the firm’s Nashville office. Lensing had a long and storied career at Fed Ex, where she most recently served as the Senior Vice President responsible for U.S. Litigation. In her role at Fed Ex, she pioneered the idea of an in-house law firm, bringing litigation and trial responsibilities into the corporate legal department and also oversaw litigation across the United States and the Virgin Islands, with an emphasis on employment matters as well as antitrust, governmental actions, and EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission charges.

Along with being a trailblazer of corporate legal services, Lensing also demonstrated her commitment to civil justice as the Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors and as Chair of the Executive Committee of the US Chamber of Commerce’s Institute for Legal Reform; additionally, she has leadership roles in the organization the Lawyers for Civil Justice.

Throughout her career Lensing has seen the experience of women in legal dramatically changed. This life experience has given her insight, and she shares her insights by mentoring young women attorneys and championing them. Kim Martin, chair of Bradley’s Litigation Practice Group, calls Lewis-Lensing’s record of mentoring younger attorneys as “fantastic.” She says, “We look forward to including her insights and experience in this area to further support Bradley’s mentoring efforts.”

Bradley Nashville Office Managing Partner Lela Hollabaugh calls Lensing joining Bradley “a thrill” and “a tremendous honor” to partner with Lensing as she “enters a new phase of her career as a litigator and innovator in private practice.”

Fox Rothschild LLP recently welcomed six attorneys from Le Clair Ryan to be spread across the firm’s Washington DC, Texas, and New Jersey offices.

Joining the Washington DC office are four attorneys, with Robert Fletcher and Brian W. Stolarz coming in as partners and Kristin W. Broz as counsel in the litigation group. Ashleigh R. Eames joins the firm as an associate, working in the labor and employment practice group. Fletcher works with corporate clients on litigation in industries such as retail, government, insurance, pharmaceutical and biotechnology. Stolarz works with clients on white collar criminal defense, with an emphasis on False Claims Act defense and securities enforcement. He also assists with internal investigations and securities enforcement. Broz has experience in class action litigation, and her background also includes experience with US and international regulations, consumer protection data privacy matters. Also joining the DC office is Ashleigh R. Eames, she will be an associate in the labor and employment practice, focusing on wage and hour issues and leave and accommodation matters, as well as hiring and workplace compliance matters.

William E. Hammel joins the firm as a partner focusing on labor and employment matters in Dallas, Texas, he has broad experience across labor and employment law, and in arbitration and litigation, but he has a focus on avoiding litigation through prevention and training, utilizing internal auditing tools and conducting investigations. His Texas roots run deep, with a JD from Baylor University and a BA from the University of Texas.

Christopher L. Pizzo joins Fox Rothschild as a partner in the corporate group in the Morristown, New Jersey office. He has a diverse group of clients, frequently working in industries that have a lot of regulation, and focusing on corporate, transactional and Mergers and Acquisitions.

In other big moves, Clark Hill recently announced it was joining forces with Las Vegas litigation boutique firm Gentile Cristalli Miller Armeni Savarese (GCMAS), with six attorneys joining Clark Hill, four as members, two as senior counsel. This combination grows Clark Hill’s presence in Las Vegas. Donald Ridge, Member in Charge of Clark Hill’s Los Angeles, San Francisco and Las Vegas offices, says “We’re excited about the combination as the team brings significant litigation and trial experience, along with a strong presence and network in Nevada that will benefit all of our clients.”

Dominic Gentile Attorney — Dominic Gentile

The attorneys from Gentile Cristalli Miller Armeni Savarese will work out of Clark Hill’s Las Vegas office. Dominic Gentile, a founding member of GCMAS is a trial attorney with an impressive record of representing his clients in white collar and bet-the-company litigation matters, nationally and internationally on civil, criminal, securities and commercial fraud investigations and litigations. Gentile is involved in a variety of organizations associated with trial and litigation law, and he has a long career teaching trial advocacy and evidence at law schools across the country. Michael Cristalli will be a member with Clark Hill, using his experience representing clients in complex criminal, corporate and civil litigation matters. Some of the cases he worked on may seem familiar, as they have been featured on dateline NBC, CBS 48 Hours, and Cristalli has been a legal analyst on shows like Good Morning America, MSNBS and Fox and Friends. Ross Miller is a former Secretary of State of Nevada, the youngest to serve in this role in both Nevada and in the country. In this position, he oversaw Commercial Recordings, Securities, Elections, Nevada Business Portal, and Notaries Public. His public service also includes serving on State of Nevada Boards including the Board of Prison Commissioners, the Governor’s Office of Economic Development, and the State Audit Committee. Along with this public service, Miller was the Deputy District Attorney in Clark County. Paola Armeni will join Clark Hill as a Member, and she has a resume that includes representing clients in criminal defense and civil rights cases in Nevada state and federal courts. Vincent Savarese has worked in federal criminal defense, constitutional law, federal civil rights and asset forfeiture, in complex litigation at the pretrial, trial and appellate stage in state and federal court. He will join Clark Hill as Senior Counsel. Mark Dzarnoski is joining Clark Hill in the securities and investments group as a Senior Counsel having 30 years of experience. He guides clients through allegations of criminal fraud and SEC/FTC investigations and civil enforcement actions. s.

Gentile indicates this is a merger based on shared values. He says, “It was important to all of us that we merge with a firm that shared our client service philosophy, work ethic and values, and in Clark Hill we found the perfect alignment.” (image of Gentile?)

Law Firm Victories, Achievements and Awards

On September 3, 2019, Gilbert LLP announced that the Commercial Division for the Supreme Court for the State of New York ruled that Gilbert client, Michael Cohen, could continue his litigation against the Trump Organization, his former employer. Cohen is arguing that the Trump Organization failed to provide attorneys’ fees and reimburse his costs in connection to a variety of legal proceedings and investigations. Hunter Winstead, who serves as the lead attorney on the matter, indicated an intention to pursue this matter to conclusion, saying, “We intend to obtain full payment of Mr. Cohen’s claims.”

Just in time for back to school, Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP, announced the publication of their Third Edition of a 50 State Guide on Student Loan Servicing Regulations. The second edition was published in June of 2018, and this edition captures the changes in the regulatory landscape of this industry, with 6 additional states enacting laws concerning student loan servicing: Colorado, Maine, Nevada, New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island. The third edition covers changes up to May of 2019, and captures some of the updated regulations on licensing fees, processes and actions—demonstrating the steps loan servicers need to take to remain in compliance. Additionally, changes made in regulation requirements in Washington, DC-based on court rulings are covered by the guide. In this rapidly shifting regulatory landscape, this guide is designed to be a quick reference for student loan servicers (but does not constitute legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship) with state by state summaries covering state laws, licensing processes, and loan servicers’ duties, as well as each state’s enforcement mechanisms. (link to guide?)

North Carolina law firm Poyner Spruill announced partners Karen Chapman, Sarah DiFranco, and Susie Gibbons were recognized as North Carolina Lawyers Weekly’s 2019 Women of Justice Award honorees. This is a designation that recognizes the highest ideals of the legal profession, and women attorneys in North Carolina who demonstrate leadership, integrity, service, sacrifice and accomplishment in improving justice quality across the state.

Peter Friedenberg and Sara Jane Shanahan of Sherin and Lodgen were both recognized as a “Lawyer of the Year” in Best Lawyers. Friedenberg was recognized for his work in Real Estate Law, and Shanahan was recognized for Litigation—Insurance. This is a designation reserved for one attorney in each specialty and location who has received the highest overall peer-feedback for their specific practice area.

Legal Industry and Law School Developments

Continuing with the back to school theme of this edition of NLR’s Legal Industry Trends; at the end of August Berkeley Law School announced that it will now consider some applicants on the basis of a GRE or GMAT score, and those applicants can avoid the LSAT. The GRE and GMAT will be accepted for those interested in concurrent or combined degree programs, or for those who are enrolled in graduate school at the time of their application to Berkeley Law. Part of the reasoning behind this development is the school’s goal to admit “outside-of-the-box thinkers” and a holistic approach to application review, according to Kristin Theis-Alvarex, Assistant Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid. She says, “Test scores—from any source—are important, but not dispositive.” Dean Erwin Chemerinksy says, “Allowing these students to apply with the GRE and GMAT will further our interdisciplinary mission and help us to continue to attract outstanding law students.” This move is part of a pilot program, and the school will evaluate the results of this decision over the next three years carefully to maintain ABA compliance.

On the other end of the spectrum, The American Bar Association released its white paper, the ABA’s 2019 Profile of the Legal Profession. This report is the first of its kind from the ABA, crammed full of data about the state of the legal profession, compiling information from surveys, studies and reports about lawyers and law firms across the United States. The report has specific sections devoted to lawyer demographics, pay, legal education, and specific information related to women attorneys, pro bono efforts and legal technology. Some interesting points below:

Male attorneys still outnumber female attorneys, almost 2 to 1. Male attorneys are 64% of all attorneys while women attorneys are at 36%.
Most state bar associations do not track race and ethnicity of attorneys, but more did in 2019 (20 states) compared to 16 states tracking in 2009.
The average lawyer salary is $144,230, but increases have slowed down after the recession of 2008-09, but from 1998 to 2018 overall, lawyer salaries almost doubled, but the cost of living rose 53%.
Of the students who enroll in law school, 35% enroll right after undergrad and 65% take at least a year off between undergrad and law school. The most common reason cited for going to law school was a route to careers in politics, government or public service, at 44%.

Full of information and factoids, this report deserves a close reading by anyone interested in getting a handle on the legal industry.

Gartner, a leading research and advisory company, recently reported the results of a survey on cost-effective legal departments. To provide this data, Gartner surveyed more than 140 companies in different locations, industries and revenue size to identify those that spend in the lowest quartile of their peer group, while handling a similar workload. Overall, the study indicated in house legal departments that invested in improving internal processes and growing internal capabilities with investments in staff training as well as standardizing legal work and developing legal ops capabilities were the most cost-effective. In fact, 63% of in-house legal work is routine, and can be standardized, and departments that lack legal operations capabilities spend 30% more than those with those abilities. These steps assist legal departments in bringing work in house and saving outside counsel expenditures for critical matters.

Michael Mayfield, research director in Gartner’s Legal & Compliance practice, says, “General Counsel also need to invest in the right areas to equip their teams to be successful, this is most clearly on display when looking at the differential in training spend between cost-effective legal departments and their higher-cost peers.”

That’s a wrap for this week. We’ll have more later in the month!

ARTICLE BY Eilene Spear of The National Law Review / The National Law Forum LLC.

More law firm updates on the National Law Review Law Office Management page.

Wage the Battle to Win the War: Expert Challenges at Class Certification [PANEL]

Please join MoginRubin partner Jennifer Oliver in Chicago on September 24^th as she joins other prominent legal and economic advisors as a panelist at McDermott Will & Emery’s “Wage the Battle to Win the War: Expert Challenges at Class Certification.” The discussion will focus on the panelists’ analysis of the current legal and economic state of class certification. Titled “Wage the Battle to Win the War: Expert Challenges at Class Certification,” Jennifer will be joined by fellow panelists from McDermott Will & Emery, Berkeley Research Group, LLC, and NERA Economic Consulting.

Certifying an antitrust class under Rule 23 has become a battle. In the last 20 years, courts have been changing the game around Rule 23 interpretation, and rigorous analysis at class certification has made briefing voluminous and expensive. Plaintiffs and defendants have had to respond accordingly by leveraging the legal tools at their disposal, wondering if there is a way to get out of the trenches and streamline the process.

On September 24, join us in Chicago for a panel discussion on the state of class certification. Seasoned legal and economic advisors will first analyze the various legal maneuvers that have caused class certification to evolve into the lengthy and expensive process we see now. They will then discuss how courts can curtail this trend in various ways, including by giving Daubert motions due consideration at class certification—a move that would pave the way for cases to be resolved early if granted, by considering the denial of those motions a route to fast-track expert issues to trial, or by dialing back and bringing the class certification process closer to its procedural roots.

Our agenda includes insights and recommendations on the following topics:

Definition of “rigorous analysis”
Daubert motions and how they can be used to streamline litigation
Recent class certification opinions to see how courts are applying rigorous analysis and reacting to Daubert motions at the class certification stage
How to work within litigation realities to curb the time, money and effort expended in an antitrust class action

Speakers:

Jennifer Oliver, Partner at MoginRubin LLP

Katharine O’Connor, Partner at McDermott Will & Emery

Michelle Lowery, Partner at McDermott Will & Emery

Dr. Shireen Meer, Associate Director at Berkeley Research Group, LLC

Dr. Lauren Stiroh, Managing Director & Chair, Antitrust & Competition Practice at NERA Economic Consulting

Click here to register.

For more upcoming legal events, see the National Law Review Upcoming Legal Education Events page.

Legal Industry News for August 12, 2019: Law Firm Updates, Hires, Awards and Legal Technology

Even though summer is still in full swing and folks are cycling through vacations, law firms and the legal industry continues to hum with activity.

Read on to see more on legal industry hires, recognitions, and new technology and research impacting the legal industry.

Law Firm Hiring, Strategic Partnerships and Expansions

Van Ness Feldman announces the return of Vincenzo Franco as a partner in the Electric and Renewable Energy Practices. Franco was at Van Ness Feldman from 2010-2014, and left the firm to work with Exelon Corporation, as Assistant General Counsel – Wholesale Trading Compliance and then Associate General Counsel at Exelon Corporation, where he led the compliance function for Constellation. With his return to VNF, Franco focuses on transactional, regulatory and enforcement matters representing utilities, generation owners, developers and other investors before FERC (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission). VNF Chair, Richard Agnew, indicated his excitement at Franco’s return. Agnew says, “His [Franco’s] in- house experience coupled with his knowledge of our clients makes Vincenzo an exceptionally strong addition to the firms highly regarded electric practice.”

Leading international technology and energy law firm Baker Botts LLP announced that it has formed strategic partnerships with the Cannon Houston, Station Houston and Capital Factory. These Houston organizations are designed to aid entrepreneurs and will specifically be working with Baker Botts’ Emerging Company and Venture Capital practice based in Palo Alto. The firm’s experience in advising entrepreneurs, emerging growth companies, investors and venture capitalists provides a valuable resource for the incubators and the entrepreneurs they nurture and host. Samantha Crispin, the Technology Sector Chair at Baker Botts points out this partnership will allow Baker Botts to work with a generation of Texas-based companies from their very inception. She says, “One of the most intriguing aspects of these partnerships is the expected cross-pollination of our Texas and California ECVC practices and that the most promising companies will gain exposure to potential investors, including those in Silicon Valley.”

Baker Botts Managing Partner John Martin embraces the opportunities for growth this partnership will provide. He says, “We have a history of working with emerging and technology companies throughout their full life cycle, and we expect these partnerships will expand those opportunities more broadly. Some of our firm’s largest clients are businesses with which we have worked since they were startups themselves.”

Dinsmore has expanded operations onto the East Coast, opening an office in the Boston Financial District. Three partners—Javier F. Flores, Eric V. Skelly and Brian Blaesser will lead the new office and the firm’s expansion into this region. The firm will primarily represent clients in litigation and real estate development in New England. With the opening of the office in Boston, Dinsmore now has a presence in 25 cities across the country.

Sherman & Howard announced they added two attorneys, Member James Beard and Associate Robert Thompson, to their Denver office in their Litigation, Trials and Appeals group.

Beard has been litigating complex civil and intellectual property matters for over ten years, with a particular emphasis on handling complex discovery matters. He has argued cases in federal courts across the country, and has handled matters before the International Trade Commission (ITC) and the U.S. Court of International Trade. Beard says, “With its history and reputation in Colorado, the Firm is uniquely positioned to serve the explosive growth of Denver’s high-tech market.”

Along with Beard, Sherman & Howard is also adding Robert Thompson as an Associate to the Litigation, Trials and Appeals practice group. Thompson’s practice will focus on securities litigation and enforcement matters. His previous experience in house at a leading financial institution has prepared him well for representing clients in SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission), DOJ (Department of Justice) and FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority ) investigations. Katie Varholak, Litigation Practice Group Leader at Sherman & Howard, “Thompson’s background in finance, securities and complex corporate investigations positions him to serve a wide range of the firm’s clients.”

Robinson & Cole, a 200 attorney firm with offices throughout the northeast announced Kenneth A. Sherman and Virginia K. Trunkes joined the firm as counsel in the Construction practice.

Sherman is joining the Boston office, while Trunkes will be in the New York office. Sherman has experience assisting project owners, developers and general contractors, and others, in navigating construction disputes, and with drafting contracts, negotiation and entity formation.

Trunkes works with developers, apartment building, brownstone and condominium unit owners, and others, in negotiating contracts and adjacent-owner license access agreements. R+C Construction chair, Gregory R. Faulkner, says the attorneys are welcome additions and will help the firm strengthen its presence in the construction market, and “Their hands-on experience is an added value to our practice and further enhances our collective ability to provide the best service to our clients.”

Law Firm Accomplishments, Awards and Recognitions

McKool Smith, noted litigation firm, secured an insurance recovery victory on behalf of Pfizer in Delaware Superior Court. This victory allows Pfizer to continue to compel two excess insurers to cover the costs related to defend and settle multidistrict litigation surrounding pain treatments Celebrex and Bextra. McKool Smith principals Robin Cohen, Adam S. Ziffer and Marc Ladd represented Pfizer in this litigation. A Delaware state court judge awarded partial summary judgment, saying Arch Insurance Company and U.S. Specialty Insurance Company were unable to apply a “specific litigation exclusion” in their D&O policies, and that these insurers must help cover the cost of the $486 million settlement.

Seyfarth Shaw was recently recognized for its commitment to diversity and inclusion by the California Minority Counsel Program (CMCP) receiving the Drucilla Stender Ramey Majority-Owned Law Firm Award. The CMCP is a state-wide non-profit dedicated to opening up the legal profession to attorneys from all backgrounds, by providing attorneys of color with opportunities for business development. Seyfarth Shaw has offices in Sacramento, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Century City. The firm has a recognized commitment to diversity, and was also recently named a “Best Law Firm for Women” for the ninth year in a row, and was shortlisted for the 2019 Chambers USA Diversity & Inclusion Awards. The firm is especially proud of its “Rooney Rule” initiative, where for every open associate position, at least one diverse candidate is considered and interviewed.

Full-service law firm Pillsbury’s Corporate practice, in a review of M&A and private equity, was ranked among the Top 20 legal advisers in the US and Japan. Factset highlighted Pillsbury as a top 20 firm in Japan for M&A deals, and in the United States, the firm was in the top 20 for middle-market M&A transactions. Along those lines, Refinitiv listed Pillsbury in the top 20 for deal count for firms handling U.S. middle-market mergers and acquisitions, so far in 2019, and Bloomberg named Pillsbury in the top 20 for active law firm advising on deals valued up to 250 million. Pillsbury has over 100 experienced M&A attorneys across the firm’s twenty global offices. Highlighted transactions for 2019 include Invitae Corp.’s acquisition of biotechnology company Jungla, Salarius Pharmaceuticals on its merger with Flex Pharma, and Intel’s acquisition of Barefoot Networks, just to name a few.

DirectWomen, dedicated to increasing the presence of women attorneys on corporate boards, will honor 2019 award recipients in October in New York City at the Sandra Day O’Connor Board Excellence Award Luncheon. These awards are given to recognize the efforts made by the recipients to increase corporate board diversity. The Sandra Day O’Connor Board Excellence Award honors women who have served on the board of a public company and have advanced the mission of diversity in the workplace. This year, Angela Braly, Co-founder of the Policy Circle and former Chair and CEO of WellPoint, now known as Anthem, among others, and Rose McKinney-James, Managing Principal of Energy Works LLC. PNC will be presented with the 2019 Board Diversity Award, which recognizes corporations that served as leaders in achieving board diversity by showing a commitment to diversity in the boardroom. Linda L. Addison, Immediate Past Managing Partner of Norton Rose Fulbright and Director, Torchmark Corporation will be recognized with the Distinguished Alumna Award, highlighting the accomplishments of an Alumnae who joined a large corporate board since completing the Institute. Finally, the Mary Ann Jorgenson Board Empowerment Award will be presented to DirectWomen Advisory Board Member Alan L. Beller, Senior Counsel, Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP; Director, The Travelers Companies, Inc for his work preparing women attorneys to assume the responsibilities of board service.

Commercial Mortgage Alert once again ranked law firm Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP at the top of their commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) tables, ranking Cadwalader as Number 1 for both Issuer Counsel and Underwriter Counsel, making it the 19^th year in a row Cadwalader held that spot for Issuer Counsel. Further, the firm represented 58% of the issuer offerings floated in the United States in the first half of 2019, and 44% of the CMBS transactions on the underwriter side. Mike Gambro, co-chair of Cadwalader’s Capital Markets Group, says of the rankings, “We work with great clients who expect us to provide top-notch advice and service, and we are fortunate to have the results reflected in our position in the law firm rankings for so many years.” Cadwalader’s Capital Markets Group has attorneys based in New York, Charlotte, Washington, D.C., and London.

Legal Industry Technology, Research and Software Advancements

Qorus, a sales platform connecting contacts, content, and data, recently announced a Share & Track feature to their software. This addition enables user to send documents securely without attachments, and track how their contacts engage with those documents, such as proposals, pitches, and contracts. This enables sales teams to see and analyze which part of their proposal process is most important to their prospects, and they gain insight into their materials to ensure they create content that is engaging and effective.

The documents are sent via tracked sharing links that can be inserted into messages to clients. These links, when clicked, track the engagement with the content and launch an online document viewer and the file can be viewed securely, providing the information securely to the prospect. The sales team can see how long the prospect looked at the document, which pages were looked at the most, and whether or not the document was passed on, providing valuable feedback on what really matters to prospects. Ray Meiring, Qorus CEO, explains “This creates a powerful feedback loop that tells the team how interested a potential buyer is, and gives them insight into the prospect’s true propensity to buy – allowing them to adjust their approach accordingly.”

With the constant concerns regarding cybersecurity and with increasing regulation on a variety of levels, the introduction of Digital Defense’s Frontline InsightTM with on-demand peer analysis of security risk metrics gives companies another arrow in their quiver to secure their data. Frontline Insight is accessible via Frontline.Cloud Digital Defense’s Saas security assessment platform. This allows Digital Defense users to access information to reduce their own security risk, and provide information on how to evolve and maintain their information security programs so that they perform at top levels. By offering comparison from an industry perspective, but also integrating suggestions based on organizational and employee size, the tool can highlight vulnerable areas and threats, and assist in the development of benchmarks. Larry Hurtado, President & CEO of Digital Defense says this is a useful product for companies looking to evaluate their data security practices in comparison to organizations similar in size and scope. He says, “Frontline.Cloud enables clients to gauge their success in ways that previously required more intensive consultative studies. Now, this information is available with just a few clicks.”

Of particular interest to law firms as they look at managing law firm succession strategies as baby boomers exit the workforce and millennials assume greater responsibility is the results of a Manpower Group Survey, indicating only six percent of millennials want to be leaders, and just four percent want to manage others. The survey indicates that millennials, on a whole, are more interested in developing their own skill sets, and less interested in learning to manage and lead others. This suggests that law firms will be among the 84% of organizations facing a leadership shortfall, and developing a leadership pipeline for law firms, as well as client relationship management, will become increasingly important as firm leadership transitions become more complex and frequent.

Intapp has recently released a white paper The Modern CMO: Advancing Marketing From Reactive to Predictive. This paper discusses how adopting a modern approach to law firm business development, and harnessing data across the entire client lifecycle can lead to insights that drive smarter and more strategic decisions in law firms. Topics discussed include the role of the CMO as a change agent, smart collaboration in action and how to transition from a reactive to a predictive approach.

This article was written by Eilene Spear of The National Law Review / The National Law Forum LLC.

For more law office updates, see the Law Office Management page on the National Law Review.

The National Law Review’s Legal Industry Overview: July 22, 2019

The National Law Review staff uses this space to explore and recognize law firm changes, including new law firm hires. Additionally, we like to highlight law firm awards and individual attorney achievements, as well as explore technology and software developments that make legal research and law firm management easier and more efficient.

Law Firm Additions, Promotions and Hires

Bracewell LLP announced they added two public finance partners, Bill Mahomes and E. Steve Bolden II. The men have been practicing together for the past ten years, and they both have extensive experience in public finance projects. Bracewell Managing Partner, Gregory M. Bopp says, “Bill and Steve are exceptional public finance lawyers. They have a strong public finance practice in Dallas and across Texas that will deepen the capabilities of our nationally-recognized team.”

Mahomes has experience in public infrastructure projects and P3s, and has served on the board of directors of the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and the Texas Turnpike Authority, giving his advice the heft of on the ground experience. Bolden, along with his public finance work, also practices in corporate and securities law; specifically, experience in mergers and acquisitions in public and private companies. In terms of his public finance practice, he focuses on bond counsel, disclosure counsel and underwriters’ counsel matters.

Alan Brunswick MSK Attorney — Alan M. Brunswick

Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp announced that Alan M. Brunswick will join the firm as a partner in the Los Angeles office. Brunswick has established a practice representing clients in labor relations matters, specifically in the media and entertainment industry. His experience spans wrongful termination, employment discrimination, wage and hour as well as ERISA disputes in union and non-union settings. Before moving to law firms, Brunswick was the former Vice President and in-house counsel for the Association of Motion Picture & Television Producers. Kevin Gaut, chairman of MSK, praises Brunswick’s reputation for creativity and intelligence, and he says, “Adding Alan to our team of sophisticated entertainment industry labor attorneys only strengthens MSK’s standing as a go-to firm for companies facing tough negotiations.”

Perkins Coie announced their Labor & Employment practice added three new partners—Richard B. Hankins and Brennan W. Bolt to their Dallas office, and Seth H. Borden to the Washington DC office. All three bring experience in labor relations advising, and have experience working with corporations and in working with the NLRB.

Hankins has over twenty years of experience working with companies on a wide range of labor relations issues; with specific emphasis on working with companies on labor relations strategies during acquisitions and divestitures, as well as plant reorganizations. Additionally, Hankins has experience before the NLRB and the US Circuit Courts of Appeals, arguing cases in over 15 regions of the NLRB. Borden has built his career on helping organizations navigate labor relations strategies, including helping to negotiate collective bargaining agreements and labor arbitrations. He has specific expertise in social media and other communications technologies and how they integrate into labor law. Brennan works with employers, providing counsel on unfair labor practice proceedings, collective bargaining, strikes and boycotts. He has litigated on the employer side on Title VII, the ADA, FMLA, FLSA, trade secrets and non-compete claims. Ann Marie Painter, Chair of the Perkins Coie Labor & Employment practice calls the addition of the attorneys a “valuable resource.” She says, “When it comes to the labor and employment space, this group has a stellar and nationally recognized reputation as the go-to team for some of the world’s largest companies. They have successfully handled large-scale ‘bet-the-company’ labor cases, but can also nimbly aid employers of all sizes with their day-to-day labor issues.”

Additionally, Perkins Coie announced that Joydeep Dasmunshi has joined the Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) practice as a partner in the Chicago office. Dasmunshi has focused on middle-market M&A transactions, and his record includes a $4.25 billion airline acquisition, a $1.75 billion sale of a global valuation, corporate finance and governance-related advisor company to a private equity firm two years ago, and work with various middle-market portfolio companies in technology, media, financial services and healthcare.

Pallavi Banerjee, Ph.D. joins Womble Bond Dickinson as a Science Advisor in the firm’s Boston office. A former fellow with Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Banerjee’s background in cell biology, cancer biology and immunology assists life sciences clients develop their patent portfolios. She has experience working with biotech companies and universities on IP due diligence and drafting and prosecution of patent applications with the USPTO. Her research on cellular and molecular mechanisms of diseases and how to identify therapeutic targets using in vitro and in vivo mechanisms have been published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, Cancer Research, Cancer Letters, and International Immunology.

Venable recently announced that Paul C. Levin has joined the firm as a partner in the Real Estate Practice. Levin has experience at all levels of the real estate transaction process, and he has worked on some of the most recognizable projects in the Bay Area. Levin is a LEED Green Associate and is a member of the U.S. Green Building Council, Northern California chapter. Additionally, he has experience with P3 projects. He will be working in Venable’s Baltimore and San Francisco offices. Levin is excited about his bicoastal work with Venable, saying, “The firm’s deep practice and stellar reputation will allow me to continue to grow as a deal lawyer. I am thankful to have the opportunity to continue to build my Bay Area practice while returning to my hometown to expand my East Coast deal flow.”

Law Firm Recognition and Accolades

John Allen, of Varnum, was recently appointed to the Ethics and Professionalism Standing Committee of the Tort Trial and Insurances Practice Section of the American Bar Association. Allen, who focuses his practice on business and commercial litigation, has served this committee devoted to consideration and understanding of issues on attorneys maintaining professional independence, at several points throughout his career. Along with being certified as a civil trial advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy, he is also a certified arbitrator and mediator.

Carmen Cole Polsinelli Attorney — Carmen Cole

Labor and Employment Attorney Carmen Cole, with Polsinelli, was recently appointed to the Board of Directors of Public Counsel. Public Counsel is a non-profit dedicated to providing legal services to individuals, families, veterans and immigrants who live below the poverty level and do not have access to legal representation. In order to address civil rights and systemic issues facing this population, the group works with volunteers from major law firms and corporations.

Cole, a Principal in Polsinelli’s LA and SF office, says, “Public Counsel plays a critical role ensuring that individuals in underserved communities within the Los Angeles area have access to quality legal representation,” said Cole. “I am honored and humbled to be a part of this mission. As someone from an environment where statistically it would have been more likely for me to have become a client of Public Counsel rather than a member of its Board of Directors, this appointment will provide an opportunity to pay it forward. This is a great way to give back to the Los Angeles community.”

Cole has a long list of community volunteer and leadership roles. She has been active with the California Minority Counsel Program; she has worked hard to make the legal industry more accessible to women and minorities. Cole has also contributed her time in raising awareness and funds for the African American Chamber of Commerce’s (GLAAC) Education Fund & Foundation program.

For the sixth year in a row, Davis Wright Tremaine was named one of the country’s Best Law Firms for Women by Working Mother magazine in conjunction with the ABA Journal. This accolade recognizes the firm’s success in retaining and recruiting women attorneys, the firm’s family-friendly policies and the resulting high number of women in leadership roles. Women comprise 27% of the equity partners at Davis Wright Tremaine. The magazine highlighted the firm’s Mentoring Circles program, which was recently revamped and now helps support over 100 women attorneys at all levels in the firm.

Labor and Employment law firm, Jackson Lewis was also one of the 60 firms recognized by Working Mother magazine as a “Best Law Firm for Women.” Firm Co-Chairs Kevin G. Lauri and William J. Anthony say they are pleased with the firm’s designation by the magazine, and they “consider it to be a direct result of the firm’s inclusive culture together with our commitment to fostering the promotion of women throughout every level of the firm.”

Meredith Borgas, editor-in-chief of Working Mother, says she hopes the magazine’s accolade highlights best practices for law firms and encourages others in the industry to follow suit. She says, “It’s heartening to see the progress women lawyers are making at firms committed to fully utilizing these attorneys’ abilities. The war for talent is increasing incentives for law firms to invest in retaining women lawyers, which is why we’re seeing more women’s initiatives and parental-support groups.”

Dan Wolf, an Associate with Gilbert LLP, was recently honored with the Making Justice Real Pro Bono Award by the Legal Aid Society of the District of Columbia. Wolf has an outstanding record in pro bono achievement, having worked with clients referred from Legal Aid and leading pro bono efforts at his firm; which he has done since he joined Gilbert in 2012. Wolf has worked with pro bono clients on consumer law matters, rental housing and public benefits, and he has recruited colleagues to take on these matters as well. Scott Gilbert, the founder and Chairman of Gilbert LLP, says Wolf “sets an example for the firm. We are both very proud and quite fortunate to have Dan as a colleague.”

Legal Industry Tech, Tools &

Thomson Reuters recently announced Westlaw Edge Quick Check, designed to harness AI technology to streamline and supercharge legal research. Quick Check allows Westlaw users to go over documents with citations to ensure everything is covered and no major points were missed. By uploading a document into Quick Check, users can have the text analyzed and Quick Check will identify the legal issues at hand, offering recommendations of relevant to the issues in the document that are not cited. Users can filter results based on previous reviews, and additional indicators are assigned based on established categories. Quick check is integrated with KeyCite to catch cases that are bad law, to ensure the results are accurate. Additionally, QuickCheck can be used to identify weakness in briefs, highlighting citations that are invalidated or overturned, and can find citations that were passed over but are relevant.

Khalid Al-Kofahi, vice president of Research & Development at Thomson Reuters says:

We’ve built Westlaw Edge Quick Check to be very sophisticated in terms of selecting which language and citations to extract from motions and briefs, and it executes several search strategies, sifts through primary and secondary law results, follows citation networks, and finds and filters by Key Numbers, courts and other data attributes. In doing so, it often considers hundreds of thousands of possibilities – far more than any researcher could go through, even if he or she had all day to do it – yet it returns a concise report of relevant material that might have been missed in a traditional research process.

Wilson Allen, a software and technical services provider for professional services law firms, and ClearlyRated, a client satisfaction, service quality research provider, have teamed up to help law firms take client experience data to distill actionable insights for business development. Norm Mullock, Vice President of Strategy at Wilson Allen, says, “After experiencing the ClearlyRated client survey program first-hand, it became clear that real-time insight into client experience would be a pivotal improvement for the firms that we work with.”

This partnership will allow law firms to maximize the data available in both client feedback and business analytics to provide the tools needed for data-driven decision making. The companies have launched an API Integration that pairs the ClearlyRated Client’s Service program with business intelligence tools in order to ensure those data points are available for business planning. Eric Gregg, ClearlyRated’s CEO, says, “The client experience is important to all professional services businesses, but it is also a prime opportunity for law firms to differentiate from the competition. Our partnership with Wilson Allen will ensure that the law firms we serve have access to measurable insight on the client experience in a way that supplements business intelligence and informs strategies for growth.”

With the need for efficiency ever-present in legal operations, LawLytics, the leading website platform for small law firms, and PracticePanther, the cloud-based practice management system, have partnered to provide customers of both forms with native integration between their platforms. By simply embedding some code, a law firm’s web leads and client forms can be linked to their PracticePanther account, simplifying the process of integrating new clients, setting up billing and matter management. Instructions, with screenshots, are available and this process can be implemented with just a few clicks.

This article was written by Eilene Spear of The National Law Review / The National Law Forum LLC.

For more legal industry updates, please see the National Law Review Law Office Management page.

NLR Legal Industry News July 1, 2019: Law Firm Recognition, Tech and Talent

The legal industry is continuously changing and we want to share the good news about strategic hires and notable industry achievements. We’re also looking to pass on interesting legal tech developments that aid lawyers and law firms in streamlining and growing their practices.

Notable Legal Industry Recognitions

The law firm of Frost, Brown & Todd was honored by the Women in Law Empowerment Forum (WILEF) for their diversity and inclusion efforts with a 2019 Gold Standard Certification, and the firm was only one of 45 firms to receive this honor. In order to be recognized firms had to meet a variety of criteria, including the mandatory criterion that at least 20% of all equity partners are female, or 33% or more of attorneys who became equity partners during the last year were women. Additionally, there are other criteria that must be met, some incorporating other diversity measures including LGBT attorneys or women of color in equity partner roles. FBT has been honored with this designation by WILEF seven times.

Carlton Fields and K&L Gates both ranked in the Construction Executive’s inaugural “The Top 50 Construction Law Firms” list. Carlton Fields’ Construction practice has received multiple accolades, including being named by Chambers USA as the No 1. Construction practice in Florida for 17 years straight. K&L Gates has over 2,000 attorneys in offices on five continents, and was named one of the top 5 firms in the inaugural edition of the list. The list considered the number of attorneys working in the area, as well as the number of states where the firm is licensed to practice, the year the practice was established and percentage of the firm’s total revenue that comes from the Construction practice.

Wiggin and Dana LLP Corporate M&A practice was recently recognized by IFLR 1000 US 2019 edition as a Tier 1 firm for Corporate M&A work in Connecticut. Additionally, five attorneys with Wiggin and Dana were specifically recognized: Paul Hughes, William Perrone, and Mark Kaduboski were named as Highly Regarded, while Evan Kipperman and James Greifzu were designated as Future Rising Stars.

For the fourth time, Chambers USA named McDermott Will & Emery the 2019 Healthcare Team of the Year. The health practice at McDermott earned a Band 1 ranking in the Healthcare category for the 10th year in a row earlier this year, and it is the only firm to hold that distinction. In fact, the practice group has picked up a variety of accolades over the years, including commendations from US News and World Report and The Legal 500. Practice Chair Eric Zimmerman says, “Our team is dedicated to helping health care companies push the boundaries of what it means to be innovative.”

Ballard Spahr attorney Judy Mok, has been named to the New York Law Journal‘s 2019 Rising Stars list. Ms. Mok has extensive experience negotiating payments transactions for some of the world’s largest retailers and financial institutions. Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Mok served as Senior Payments Counsel for Apple Inc.

Per Alan S. Kaplinsky, Practice Leader of Ballard Spahr’s Consumer Financial Services Group. “Judy represents the best that our legal profession has to offer—she has a sophisticated understanding of the payments ecosystem, she leads by example, and she fosters an inclusive environment.”

Legal Talent Update

EDITThomasSengelwaltSJ — Thomas J. Sengewalt

Steptoe & Johnson PLLC announced that Thomas J. Sengewalt has rejoined the firm’s Denver litigation practice. Sengewalt has experience in energy litigation and energy transactions. Steptoe & Johnson CEO Susan S. Brewer expressed excitement for Tom’s return to Steptoe & Johnson, saying, “His work in litigation and transactions helped some of the Appalachian region’s largest energy producers, and we know he will bring the same skill and passion to our clients in the Rockies.”

Former Commissioner of the California Department of Business Oversight, Jan Lynn Owen joined Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP as a senior advisor in the financial services group. Owen is known for her embrace of technology and using technology to foster innovation, and she worked to find banking solutions for the cannabis retail industry, working with state regulators and business owners to innovate practical and safe solutions for these businesses. Additionally, she worked to develop fintech start-ups, working to reduce regulatory burdens in this industry while safeguarding consumer privacy. Owen says, “I knew Manatt’s financial services group would be the ideal place for me to advise and counsel businesses that face a number of complex regulatory and marketplace challenges in today’s rapidly evolving new economy.”

Feinberg Day Alberti Lim & Belloli LLP in Menlo Park, California is increasing its intellectual property punch with the addition of five intellectual property attorneys, including two new Partners Robert Kramer and Russell Tonkovich. The firm will undergo a name change and be called: Feinberg Day Kramer Alberti Lim Tonkovich & Belloli LLP. Kramer and Tonkovich each have assembled an impressive resume of awards and a history of winning verdicts in significant patent infringement cases. Tonkovich is a medical doctor as well as an attorney. Additionally, Feinberg Day is also adding attorneys Kate Hart, Aidan Brewster and Nick Martini to their IP focused law firm. Feinberg Day was founded in 2011, and has a reputation for assisting clients in monetizing their patent portfolios.

EDITMonahanChris.WinstonStrawn.DC — Christopher B. Monahan

Winston Strawn announced the addition of Christopher B. Monahan to their Washington DC office. Monahan works with clients on compliance with International Traffic in Arms regulations, the Export Administration Regulations and sanctions programs under OFAC and FCPA. He assists clients with internal investigations and compliance reviews, and he helps clients in determining jurisdiction and export control classification of their products and technology. Monahan will join the firm as a partner in the White Collar, Regulatory Defense & Investigations Practice.

Legal Technology News

Legal Services Link recently launched ioRefer™ Referral Software designed to streamline the referral process within law firms, bar associations, legal networks and corporate law departments. ioRefer’s interactive database helps attorneys looking for assistance on particular projects to quickly post and distribute staffing needs notices either within their law firm or within a broader legal network. Conversely, law firm attorneys or network professionals with extra capacity can search the database for staffing needs on specific projects. ioRefer for Corporate law departments simplifies the process of retaining qualified law firm talent via targeted matter postings or by searching an intuitive, current directory of qualified professionals.

Attorney and co-founder, Matthew Horn: “ioRefer solves the ineffective, outdated, manual processes used to refer and staff client matters and helps balance the workload distribution of matters to qualified professionals who are looking to take on more work. For law firms, it keeps client matters from being sent outside the firm and at the same time helps lawyers become more interconnected with their colleagues.”

Cheryl Kaufman, CEO of Alliance Legal Solutions — Cheryl Kaufman

Alliance Legal Solutions recently launched Fundafi.com, a technology-enabled lending platform that improves access to financing for small U.S.law firms. Fundafi’s business model is designed to nurture a law firm’s growth much like a private equity firm would do for an emerging business. Fundafi has deep knowledge of small law firm practices gained during 8 years of experience working with thousands of law firms. Alliance Legal Solutions was founded in 2011, by Cheryl Kaufman, a graduate of Wake Forest School of Law.

Over three billion images are shared online each day, and around 85% of them are unlicensed, with estimated revenue lost at more than $600 million daily, as reported by COPYTRACK and summarized in its recently released 2019 Global Infringement Report.

Some of the more interesting findings from the 2019 report reveal that the U.S. is the world leader in image theft comprising 22.96% of worldwide theft. But less obvious is the #2 offender, Panama, a country with four million inhabitants, comprising a 6.76% share of global image theft. This anomaly is likely the result of “Privacy Protection Services,” who registers site domains in Panama to mask the owners’ personal information. China, considered by many to be the world leader in authorized use, comes in third place with a surprisingly small 6.57%.

Cyber Special Ops, LLC, recently announced a new delivery model for cyber services called Concierge Cyber™ which is modeled after the growing practice of concierge medicine. It includes à la carte or bundled service offerings. same day appointments, phone or email access on evenings and weekends, and pre- and post-breach services as needed at pre-negotiated rates. Breach response services are provided by My-CERT™, a team of highly credentialed legal, information security, credit and identity restoration, and public relations specialists

Per Kurtis Suhs, founder and managing director of Cyber Special Ops, LLC: “Currently only 2 of 10 organizations have purchased cyber insurance, and their policies may not cover theft of monies. So, who do organizations call in the event of a wire fraud loss on a Friday evening? Concierge Cyber makes it possible for organizations of all sizes and budgets to have immediate access to world-class cyber risk management support. The My-CERT™ team provides expertise, experience and agility to effectively respond to a cyber incident under the protection of attorney-client privilege.”

Notable legal industry news? Submit your stories for consideration in the National Law Review’s Legal Talent and Tech Update.

This article was written by Eilene Spear of The National Law Review / The National Law Forum LLC.

For more on the business of law, please see the National Law Review Law Office Management page.

Mid-Year Marketing Check-up for Law Firms: The 7 Most Important Metrics

July 2 marks the halfway point of the year, and for many law firms, that means it is time to reflect on their business growth strategies and plan ahead for end of the year client gifts. Successful attorneys know that marketing is a huge part of the effectiveness of these initiatives. It takes careful evaluation of your marketing tools, campaigns, and overall law firm goals in order to make the second half of the year stretch the boundaries of what your firm is capable of.

Although marketing looks a little different for business to consumer practices and business to business practices, here are some tips that will work for everyone. You can rely on these seven areas to reflect on as you develop a solid, data-based marketing plan for Q3 and Q4 for your law firm:

Growth Metrics and Reconfiguring

The very first item on your list is to sit down and dig deep into the numbers. Take a look at your analytics from all your marketing sources (both paid and unpaid). Review your web traffic and get a good handle on where you are getting the bulk of your online visitors from. Review your paid retargeting campaigns and see which web pages are scoring highest for returning visitors. Evaluate the leads you received from offline sources like conferences, networking events, and print advertising.

For each of your offline and online sources, create an estimate of how much the current and future business is worth. This exercise will ensure that you are being conscious of how your marketing dollars are being spent and will give you a data-driven course of action when it comes to what should be invested in more and what can be cut.

Content Marketing Evaluation

Halfway through the year is a good time to stop and reflect on your content marketing plan’s performance. This includes digital, print, image, and video content that you are developing in-house. Review the top pieces of content that you generated with all stakeholders discussing the following:

Why did this piece of content work for our law firm?
What kinds of interaction did it receive and from whom? (Shares, likes, comments, clicks to website)
What targeted industries or demographic groups do we want to reach that we are not currently reaching?
Is our current content producer (writer, video producer, editor, etc.) the appropriate fit for the content our law firm is producing?
What is missing from our law firm’s content marketing campaigns?
What are the steps for filling these gaps?
What could we cut?

Answering these questions is a good start to ensuring that your content marketing dollars are getting the best return on investment. In addition, this is a good time to take a look at the upcoming months and plan out the types of content that your law firm will be producing before the end of the year.

Client Appreciation Strategy

The end of the year is just six months away, which means that you need to begin thinking about how you will honor the people who have helped you be successful this year. This might be something as simple as sending out holiday greeting cards, or something as elaborate as an honorary black-tie dinner. Whatever you choose to do, make sure that you include it in your half-year review so that you can appropriately budget the time and talent to make it happen for your clients and referral sources around the holidays.

Online Reputation Management

When things are busy, it is easy to let things like online biographies and photographs remain untouched and slide into antiquity. Unfortunately, most people looking for your services will look online first before they make a call. Outdated biographies may under-represent your skills or hold inaccurate contact information, making it hard for referrals to ever find you.

Old photographs can be even more detrimental. A great headshot is often the lynchpin deciding whether or not a potential client feels that you are trustworthy, dedicated, and approachable. People seeking legal representation often are looking for the person they see online to match what the person looks like in real life.

At the year’s halfway point, it is time to take an hour or so and ensure that you are accurately represented to the hundreds of people who will come into contact with your online profiles.

Award Calendar Updates

Awards and honors are continuing reminders of your law firm’s status as among the best in your field. As such, the mid-year mark is a good time to both reflect on the awards your team earned so far and make a strategy for how to continue the pattern of success.

To ensure the best chance of earning further accolades, I suggest creating or updating an editorial calendar spreadsheet designed to track: a) potential awards; b) due dates for those awards; c) submissions created; d) submissions approved; and, e) submissions sent.

Of course, you do not have to write every award submission or nomination yourself. But creating a plan to capture the “low-hanging fruit” of awards you easily fit the qualifications for is an important step to take at least twice per year.

Social Media Review

Similarly, it is wise to consider the social media channels that you will be planning on using for the next half of the year and develop a plan for those posts in advance. This plan should begin with the large-picture metrics and reconfiguring that I spoke of earlier. Then, once you can see which posts have been effective, it is time to devise additional content that builds on your knowledge of what is working.

Some key things to consider when you are reviewing and planning for the upcoming months’ social media campaigns:

Stock photography. Will you need to have images purchased, or can you take pictures in-house to assist with the need for pictures?
Special dates or celebrations. Can you create a specialized graphic for National Child Safety Awareness Month? What is your plan for honoring the Fourth of July? How about Thanksgiving? Take a minute to put these things on your content calendar so you have more than enough time to plan how you will address these special occasions.
Writing/production schedules. Are there any large-scale videos or specialized pieces of content that will need to be produced (such as a white-paper or e-book)? Give yourself at least a few months notice so that you can get all the involved parties moving together towards the same goals, vision, and deadline.

Website Updates and Audit

At least twice a year, it is a good idea to do a full audit of the functionality and safety of your website. Ensure that your links are in working order, your content management system (CMS) is up-to-date with the latest security protocols, and all of your online content (including attorney biographies) is up-to-date and in working order.

In order to make the second half of the year as good, or better, than the first, it is vital to take stock at this half-way mark. Through careful reflection, collaboration with your colleagues and marketing stakeholders, and foresight into what the future holds, this can be a great time to refresh and rejuvenate your marketing plan.

Article by Meranda M. Vieyra of Denver Legal Marketing.

For more on Legal Marketing see the National Law Review Business of Law page.

Congratulations to the Legal Sales and Service Organization Winners of 2019 Sales and Service Awards

Last week the Legal Sales and Service Organization announced the 2019 winners Sales & Service Award Winners. The awards were presented by John Hellerman at the 16th Annual RainDance conference. Winners were recognized in three categories:

Sales & Service Sales Team of the Year
Sales & Service Executive of the Year (small firm)
Sales & Service Executive of the Year (large firm)

The panel of judges included Erica Glass, Director of Global Corporate Communications and Wolters Kluwer, Chris Hummel, Director of Marketing and Business Development at Banner Witcoff and Samantha McKenna, LinkedIn Sales Navigator. The judges looked to recognize sales, business development, and marketing professionals who spearheaded initiatives that contributed to revenue growth in law firms in 2018.

Barnes & Thornburg was named the Sales & Service Team of the Year, recognized for their “Marketing Blitz 1.0.” In this initiative, the four-person team of Gretchen Helms, Business Development Manager, Karen Smith, Director of Communications, Susan Haag, Director of Marketing Services and Gwen Ragno, Digital Marketing Manager hit the road, visiting each of the firm’s offices to provide attorneys with training. Topics included new approaches to business development and showcased the capabilities of the department. The initiative was such a success, Marketing Blitz 2.0 is in the works.

Brandi Hobbs, the Director of Client Service & Strategy at Poyner Spruill was named the Sales & Service Executive of the Year in the small firm category. Poyner Spruill is a 93-attorney firm based in North Carolina, and Hobbs spearheaded a program to set strategic marketing and business development choices by focusing on “Clients as Advocates.” Throughout the year, Hobbs developed new approaches to training and increasing efficiency in the firm, with a focus on client service and learning client’s businesses to deepen relationships.

Christian Berger, Senior Advisor of Strategic Business Development at McGuire Woods was named the Sales & Service Executive of the Year for a large firm. Over the past year, Berger has originated or co-originated more than 75 new client relationships and participated in more than 160 first pitch meetings. Additionally, Berger has worked with attorneys to coach them on their own Business Development efforts, and Joe Cave, Chief Marketing and Business Development Officer says his impact on the firm is “nothing short of remarkable.”

Congratulations to all on their accomplishments!

Read more on the Business of Law on our Law Office Management Page.

Best Practices for Class Action Litigators and Why Mediation may be in the Client’s Best Interest: Pierce Atwood Launches new Class Action Mediation Service

Pierce Atwood, is launching a Class Action Mediation service with led by Don Frederico, Boston Partner and chair of the Class Action Defense Practice. Frederico took some time to share his insights on class action litigation with NLR readers. He offers some advice to attorneys who are looking for a career working in Class Action Litigation, as well as his insights into why mediation might be the best solution for clients.

Frederico has over three decades of trial and litigation experience. He says, “I have worked with many attorneys on both sides of the ‘v’ and have litigated, mediated, and settled many different types of class actions.” This experience gives Frederico the understanding to assist in the negotiation of settlement agreements that achieve client goals, satisfy the standards applicable to class action settlements and ultimately get approved by the courts. Frederico describes the intricacies of Class Action litigation, some advice for how to succeed in this area based on his experience, why mediation is sometimes the best answer for both plaintiffs and defendants.

Class Actions: A Complex and Challenging Area of Law and Some Guidelines for Success

Class action litigation offers many unique challenges for attorneys who practice in that area. Frederico says, “Class action litigation combines many things I like about practicing law. It is intellectually challenging and procedurally complex, and brings to bear interpretations of a complex set of case law, including many Supreme Court precedents.” Combine that with high stakes and a result that can impact not just an individual, but a wide group, he says, “You have an opportunity for vigorous courtroom advocacy in connection with the merits of the case, the class certification motion, and often the admissibility of expert testimony in a variety of fields of knowledge.”

In his view, a few elements are key to being successful with class action law. Though it may seem fundamental, he indicates the first piece for any aspiring class action attorney is to know class action law and know it well. He says, “So much depends on the class certification motion tha close familiarity with the key rules, principles, and cases is imperative.” Along those lines, Frederico suggests aspiring class action attorneys “master fundamental litigation skills. The best class action lawyers are good trial lawyers, and knowing how to try a case, prepare a case for trial, and present oral argument is just as important as knowing the key class action decisions applicable to your case.”

In the courtroom, reading your audience and assessing their familiarity with these knotty procedural guidelines is crucial. Frederico points out, “Some judges have handled enough class actions that they don’t need you to dwell on the basics, but others need and often want your argument to include an overview of the fundamental principles applicable to the class action motion.” Discerning what elements to include where and when, and if the judge you are arguing before wants those guideposts can have an impact on your outcome. Speaking to the procedural roller coaster than class actions can be, Frederico advises: “Fight hard against opposing counsel, but never make it personal.” In most class action situations, opposing counsel end up working together on questions of settlement, and he says, “ If you transition from making war to making peace, you and your opponent will need to work together to craft a reasonable settlement and may need to join forces against objectors who would derail it. Adversaries can quickly become needed allies.”

Mediation in Class Actions

As discussed, Class Action Litigation can be very expensive, time-consuming and risky. Mediation is attractive because it helps undercut those three downsides, and instead focuses on finding solutions to the disputes at hand. Frederico says, “Mediation can mean the difference between rationally managing each side’s business and financial goals and simply throwing the dice and hoping for the best.” Frederico points to the risk on both sides that class action litigation can entail–how it can take years for the process to unfurl through trial and appellate courts while defendants risk a large judgement and plaintiffs counsel risk uncompensated time and large costs. The court system itself is prohibitive, with high costs for expert witnesses and extensive discovery, briefing and argument before any sort of resolution is reached. While defendants don’t want to reward meritless cases with a settlement, Frederico says, “some defendants will endure high costs of defense as a matter of principle, but defendants also must weigh those costs against the business realities of expensive and distracting litigation as well as the probability and consequences of a bad outcome.”

With the risks inherent in class action litigation, mediation is often in the best interests of the client. Frederico says, “most class actions settle, and many of them settle after mediation. As a trial lawyer, I often don’t want my cases to settle, but as a business advisor, I recognize that a class action settlement often may be in my client’s best interest.”

This post was written by Eilene Spear.

Movements and the Leadership Thread: Facebook Groups Leader Jennifer Dulski on What Makes a Movement

“Movements begin with one person, taking one step,” was perhaps the most inspiring line of Jennifer Dulski’s keynote speech of the LMA Annual 2019 Conference. Dulksi, best-selling author of Purposeful: Are You a Manager or a Movement Starter?; rooted her talk in her experience as leader of Facebook Groups; the incubator for many social movements from parenting to disaster response. Before working at Facebook, she was the COO of Change.org, an early Yahoo! Employee and the CEO of Dealmap, an app Google eventually bought making Dulski the first female entrepreneur to sell a company to Google. Dulski’s presentation dissected the elements and leadership needed to create movements, putting those ideas into context with powerful examples that are instantly recognizable. Dulski’s self-deprecating, approachable and inspiring presentation reminded us that we can all start a movement.

The Leadership Thread and Starting Movements

Dulski points out that “All movements start with small actions made by individual people.” When put that way, it all seems very possible, that these grandiose changes that impact our world all begin fundamentally, with one person taking one small action. Dulski’s keynote continued in that vein, as she broke down the components of successful movements into what she called The Leadership Thread, suffusing her points with optimism and anecdotes of real-world examples, showing how this framework fits with some recent grassroots movements.

Courage to Get Started

The Leadership thread begins with garnering the courageto get started. While it’s one thing to point out movements begin with a single step, it would be a disservice to ignore how difficult it can be to take that first step. That’s where leaders begin—with finding the courage to start. And Dulski Shared her personal acronym for when she is scared—the idea that gives her the courage to ride her bike through Delhi or take on any of the many challenges that come her way. She says IICDICDA; or: If I Can Do This I Can do Anything. This is the kind of thinking that got her through a team building bike ride in Old Delhi with only one cow-related injury—and importantly, acknowledging that fear is normal and inevitable, and being brave isn’t about not feeling fear—it’s about overcoming that fear, and doing things you might not do otherwise.

Clear and Compelling Vision

After finding the courage to start, movement starters create a clear and compelling vision—with an articulated desired future, a clear purpose, and a compelling story. Humans need inspiration, and so often, that inspiration comes in the form of a story. By distilling your vision into a clear story you can reach others, and giving them a story gives them something to understand. A story illustrates your vision and makes it something to pick up and carry—allowing others to join in on the load.

Mobilize Others and Encourage Early Adopters

The next step is mobilizing others around that vision. If others are moved by your story and can see the vision you see, make sure they have the tools and understanding to work beside you. This means embracing the early adopters. Empower those who embrace your vision by giving them jobs, responsibilities, and encouragement. Make them the moderators of a facebook group, and let them share the load. Giving people meaningful responsibilities in the movement inspires ownership, and the more invested people feel the more they will give.

Persuade Decision Makers

However, some people’s opinion can be the knife’s edge between success and failure—so finding ways to persuade decision-makers can be crucial for realizing success. This can be as simple as making it easy for the decision maker to say yes—finding what will persuade that individual and putting what they need—hard data, a story, in front of him or her. In many instances this can involve a variety of tools, so creating a toolkit of available options is an important starting point. Build a coalition of the willing with a variety of talent at their disposal, and use each tool where appropriate. One tool Dulski discussed is power mapping or influence mapping—basically, figuring out who influences the people you need to influence, and then influencing them.

Navigate Criticism

Reminding the audience of a Jeff Bezos quote: “If you absolutely can’t tolerate critics, don’t do anything new or interesting.” Dulski points out that any movement needs to learn to navigate criticism. One map to that is to understand criticism as helpful information—and figure out what just needs to be managed. Dulski outlined additional strategies for handling criticism, including the bear hug, and leveraging the naysayers.

One strategy for pernicious critics is to wrap them in a bear hug—engage the critic to ask why they feel so strongly, and what can you do about it? Offering to address their concerns in an honest and meaningful way shows a willingness to listen can be disarming. Many critics, when given the opportunity to air their grievances and most importantly, feel heard, will stop the sort of toxic criticism that can be so harmful to movements.

Another way to empower your critics and help accomplish your goals is to leverage the naysayers; this involves embracing the criticism and asking the critic to use his or her expertise to help improve the process. Again, allowing the critic to be heard, and asking for his or her contributions can neutralize the more negative aspect, bringing them to your side as you work together to make improvements.

Overcome Obstacles

Finally, any movement will hit obstacles along the way. Finding a way to clear the obstacles is important for any movement, and problems—even crisis, is to be expected. Dulski discussed the four kinds of crisis responders, and how a mix of these personality types in response to a crisis is important to weather the storm. The big takeaway, though-is that obstacles are inevitable, and moving forward with your goals is the most important part. The good news is that if you keep moving up over and under, whatever it takes, you will get through the tough times.

In understanding how people respond to crisis, Dulski offered a helpful categorization tool and discussed the four types of crisis responders. The first are firefighters—who want to run into the thick of the problem and solve it; addressing any and all issues right away. Another response are the Fire Inspectors, who want to understand why the problem happened and make sure it never ever happens again. Both approaches are helpful, and a mix of both on your team is ideal. Along the same vein, there are the EMTs, who look to the people affected by the crisis and come in, armed with food and concern, ready to focus on the individuals affected and taking care of them. And finally, there are the Doomsayers, who see crisis as a sign of doom, and are always seeing a new crisis on the horizon. There are elements of this kind of crisis response in all of us, and making sure the response balances these elements keeps movements on track.

Taking the First Step

Movements are a lot of work–and sometimes you might question whether or not that work is worth it. Dulski points out that your work will matter, maybe in ways you don’t expect, but it will still matter to someone down the line. Dulski left the audience with a sense that our actions are not only powerful but can have an impact beyond our wildest expectations.

This post was written by Eilene Spear of the National Law Review

Read more on Law Office Management on the National Law Review’s Business of Law page.

Category: Legal Business Development

Legal Research News; Law Firm Updates and Awards and Law School Admission Changes: September 9, 2019

Law Firm Hires, Moves and Mergers

Law Firm Victories, Achievements and Awards

Legal Industry and Law School Developments

Like this:

Wage the Battle to Win the War: Expert Challenges at Class Certification [PANEL]

Speakers:

Click here to register.

Like this:

Legal Industry News for August 12, 2019: Law Firm Updates, Hires, Awards and Legal Technology

Law Firm Hiring, Strategic Partnerships and Expansions

Law Firm Accomplishments, Awards and Recognitions

Legal Industry Technology, Research and Software Advancements

Like this:

The National Law Review’s Legal Industry Overview: July 22, 2019

Law Firm Additions, Promotions and Hires

Legal Industry Tech, Tools &

Like this:

NLR Legal Industry News July 1, 2019: Law Firm Recognition, Tech and Talent

Notable Legal Industry Recognitions

Legal Talent Update

Legal Technology News

Like this:

Congratulations to the Legal Sales and Service Organization Winners of 2019 Sales and Service Awards

Like this:

Best Practices for Class Action Litigators and Why Mediation may be in the Client’s Best Interest: Pierce Atwood Launches new Class Action Mediation Service

Class Actions: A Complex and Challenging Area of Law and Some Guidelines for Success

Mediation in Class Actions

Like this:

ABA to Have Cyber Monday Sale on November 26!

Shop and save one day only with promo code CYBER18 on books, eBooks, and on-demand CLE products.

Like this:

Law Firm Hires, Moves and Mergers

Law Firm Victories, Achievements and Awards

Legal Industry and Law School Developments

Share this:

Like this:

Speakers:

Click here to register.

Share this:

Like this:

Law Firm Hiring, Strategic Partnerships and Expansions

Law Firm Accomplishments, Awards and Recognitions

Legal Industry Technology, Research and Software Advancements

Share this:

Like this:

Law Firm Additions, Promotions and Hires

Legal Industry Tech, Tools &

Share this:

Like this:

Notable Legal Industry Recognitions

Legal Talent Update

Legal Technology News

Share this:

Like this:

Growth Metrics and Reconfiguring

Content Marketing Evaluation

Client Appreciation Strategy

Online Reputation Management

Award Calendar Updates

Social Media Review

Website Updates and Audit

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Class Actions: A Complex and Challenging Area of Law and Some Guidelines for Success

Mediation in Class Actions

Share this:

Like this:

The Leadership Thread and Starting Movements

Courage to Get Started

Clear and Compelling Vision

Mobilize Others and Encourage Early Adopters

Persuade Decision Makers

Navigate Criticism

Overcome Obstacles

Taking the First Step

Share this:

Like this:

Cyber Monday is November 26!

Share this:

Like this: